WASHINGTON—The
Catholic Home Missions Appeal, which will be taken up in many U.S. parishes the
weekend of April 28-April 29, supports home mission dioceses, which are
dioceses in the United States and its dependencies that need outside help to
offer basic pastoral services. The Appeal, sponsored by the U.S. Conference of
Catholic Bishops (USCCB), strengthens the church at home by bridging the gap
between need and available resources in those dioceses.

Many
dioceses are blessed with vocations to the priesthood, but the cost to educate
one seminarian in a home mission diocese is roughly $30,000. In an average
grant cycle, 18-20 percent of funds collected for the Catholic Home Missions
Appeal go toward seminarian education. In 2011, the Appeal enabled the home mission
diocese of Biloxi, Mississippi, to support 100 percent of the expenses of
educating 12 seminarians.

"There
is a serious need for priestly formation in mission dioceses throughout the
United States in order to build vibrant parish communities," said Bishop
Michael W. Warfel of Great Falls-Billings, Montana, and chairman of the USCCB
Subcommittee on Catholic Home Missions. "Often home mission priests require
special training to attend to the unique needsof their faith communities. The
support of Catholics throughout the United States is necessary for the success
of these and other projects."

A
unique need in the Biloxi community, where Catholics make up one-quarter of the
hearing impaired individuals in the region, is training sign language practitioners.
Without the appeal, the desperate need for sign language practitioners cannot
be met.

"The
grants we receive from the Catholic Home Missions Appeal help us ensure that
the future of these parishes are in the hands of adequately prepared priests who
can meet the needs of the residents here. While we have faced many challenges
in recent years, this Appeal restores our hope that the future will be brighter
and our parishioners will continue to be served," said Bishop Roger P. Morin of
Biloxi.

The
Subcommittee on Catholic Home Missions oversees the Catholic Home Missions
Appeal as part of the USCCB Committee on National Collections. This
year the Subcommittee is providing $8.3 million in funding to 84 home mission
diocese in the United States. The Catholic Home Missions Appeal funds essential pastoral projects such as
catechesis, cultural ministry and lay leadership training and helps keep
mission parishes open. Visitwww.usccb.org and search "home missions" for more information.

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